Apparatus for loading vessels.



10.726,685.' I l v PATENTEDAP'R. 2a, 19o-3.

LHOLBROOK.

I PPARTUS POR LOADING VESSELS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 1, 1902. ,No MODEL.V A2 SHEETS-annum.,

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No. 726,685. i f PATBNTBD APR`..23, 1903..

E. HoLjBRooK.

. APPARATUS FOR LOADING VEssELS.. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 1,-1902- A No MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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ELLIOT HOLE-ROOK, OFIANSAS CITY, MISSOURI.

Y,nPAFmTus FonI noADlNe'vESSEl-S- SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 726,685, dated April 28, 1903.

Application ledAugust 1,1902. Serial No. 118,021. (No model.)

To all whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, ELLIOT HoLBRooK, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Kansas City, Jackson county, State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Loading Vessels, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to loading apparatus for'discharging coal, ore, stone, and other granular material directly from cars into the holds of ships, barges, or other boats; and my object is to provide a structure of Ythis char# acter which will permit the loading of such granular material into the vessels bya gradual descent and Without a free drop directly from the cars into the holds of said vessels, thus preventing the breakage of the mate# rial, and whichwill also enable the discharge of the contents of a plurality of cars without uncoupling the same. To accomplish this object, I provide'a movable 'bridge or -plat` form and means for moving the bridge into place over the vessel to be loaded and ways or tracks leading to the bridge structure, over which the cars may be run to and onto the bridge, and a chute composed of Ysliding sec` tions operating-in connection with'thebridge or platform to deliver by easy descent the material into ther hold of the vessel.

My invention therefore'oonsis'ts in the novel means above designated and in the details thereof, as hereinafter described, and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional elevation showing a convenient form of my invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail of the chute. Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation of a modiiication. Fig. 4 is a plan view thereof, and Fig. 5 is a detail of a modification.

Referring now to the drawings in which the same reference characters' relate to the same or corresponding parts in all the Views, the numeral 1 indicates an elevated way or track mounted upon a suitable supporting structure or trestle 2, so constructed as to provide a space for mooring a vessel 3, into which the material is to be loaded. A movable platform or bridge structure 4, carrying a way or track 5 to aline with the fixed track or way l, is connected, preferably, by a hinge connection at one end to the fixed structure of the way, the bridge-section or platform being of suicient length to span the space between the two parts of the trestle or elevated Way, both ends of said bridge-section resting upon the fixed structure of the way 1, so as to bring the track or Way 5 in alinement with the track or way 1,or, if desired, this bridge may be of any simple wellknown bascule type.' The bridge structure is raised andlowered` by any suitable hoisting'mechanismsuch, for example, as a block and tackle, one block 6 of which is fixed or secured to the apex of the truss-frame 7 of the bridge, the other block 8 being supported by a suitable xed4 structure, such as sheers 10. The fall ll'leads from the block 8 to a suitable hoisting-drum, conventionally represented at 12 and operated by a chain or belt drive 20, driven by a suitable motor 13, all supported upon the fixed structure or upon the wharf or dock, as may be found desirable 'and convenient. The hoisting mechanism is represented conventionally, as it may be of any common type of hoisting mechanism, and hence not necessary to show in vdetail.

Supported upon the bridge structure is a chute 14, consisting in the present instance of an upper fixed section l5, attached to the bridge, the upper end of said section being flared to form a suitable hopper for directing the material as it falls into the same from the cars, the latter which may be of any approved vhopper-bottom type.` The hopper-section of the chute is preferably fixed to the bridge at its middle portion, throughl which a suitable opening is provided for the passage of the material from the cars into the chute. The sections 16 of the chute 14 are telescopically mounted upon one another, each section sliding upon the outside of the section just above Aand. the top section sliding upon the fixed hopper-section. Each section is preferably of cylindrical shape and'is provided at the top with an inner strengthening-band 17 and at the bottom with a similar inner and outer strengthening-band, except the bottom section, which is shown with an inner band only, said bands overlapping each other when the sections are telescoped, thereby forming stops or abutments, whereby as the lower section is raised it may engage and impart vertical movement to the section above it, and in ICO ' continue the track 1 beyond the outer end of the bridge-as, for example, when the vessels to be loaded are moored alongside of a dock or wharf where the space will not permit or where it is not practical to build the trestle for the track over water, as in some harbors on the sea-coast and great lakes. In such cases the movable bridge may be built, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4t, Where 2l indicates the wharf with respect to which the bridge is mounted upon a traveling carriage 23, supported upon wheels 22, running on tracks 27. The carriage 23 may be moved transversely of the tracks to any position along the dock or wharf and locked in position opposite any similarly lconstructed and disposed fixed track or way structure 1 by means ot' suitable locking mechanism, such as locking-bolts 24, hinged at 25 to the fixed track structure and adapted to drop into and engage jaws 26 on the bridge when the latter is brought into proper alinement. The transverse movement of the bridge may, it is evident, be utilized in connection with the track structure of Fig. 1, if desired, and when found convenient and where there is a plurality of tracks leading to various loading-points on the dock or wharf or other place, or a corresponding number of movable bridges may be used, if found desirable, in which latter case the swinging-bridge structure of Fig. 1 will be advantageous. The falls 19, of course, are detached from the hoisting device 12 and the chute telescoped when the carriage 23 is moved.

When the bridge is movable transversely with respect to the track structure, as above described, it is preferable to provide a cantaliver structure 9 along the wharf or dock upon which to support the tracks 27.

The carriage 23 may be moved along its tracks by any suitable means, as a wire rope 2S, leading to a suitable motor conveniently located, or by a rack 30 and a pinion 29 on a shaft supported by any suitable means onA the bridge-carriage, Fig. 5, and operated by a suitable motor on the said bridge structure, or by a crank connection, or in any other suitable way.

The operation of the apparatus is as follows: The bridge or platform being out of the way, a vessel is brought into position and moored so that it will be located directly under the bridge when the latter is moved into the position shown in Figs. 1 or 3. The chute is then lowered until its lower end is close to the bottom of the vessel, whereupon the cars may be run upon the bridge and each dumped directly into the hopper-section of the chute, the latter being gradually raised as the material is discharged from the cars. Any number of cars may be unloaded consecutively without uncoupling in the form shown in Fig. 1, the empty cars passing off the opposite side to that side from which the loaded cars are drawn or pushed. When operated from one side, as in Fig. 3, the empty car is drawn back on the same side and another loaded car takes its place.

I claim as my inventionl. ln an apparatus for loading Vessels, the combination with a fixed track or way, of a movable bridge or platform having a track or way adapted to aline with the fixed track or way and to receive a series of coupled cars, a discharge-opening intermediate 0f the ends of the movable bridge, means for moving the bridge or platform into place over a vessel and with the track or way thereon in alinement with the fixed track or way, whereby loaded cars may be run upon the bridge from the fixed track or way and the load discharged in succession directly into the vessel without uncoupling, substantially as described.

2. In an apparatus for loading vessels, thc combination with a fixed track or way, of a movable bridge or platform having a discharge-cliute connected thereto and intermediate of the ends thereof, and provided with a track or way adapted to aline with the fixed track or way and to receive a series of coupled cars, means for moving the bridge or platform into place over a vessel, whereby loaded cars may be run upon the bridge from the fixed track or way and the load discharged therefrom in succession through the chute directly into the vessel without uncoupling, substantially as described.

3. In an apparatus for loading vessels with ore, coal and other granular material, the combination with a fixed track or Way, of a movable bridge or platform having a track or way adapted to aline with the fixed track or way and to receive a series of coupled cars, means for moving the, bridge into place over a vessel, and a telescopic chute having a fixed section attached to the bridge intermediate of the ends thereof and adapted to direct material from the car directly into the vessel, substantially as'described.

4t. In an apparatus for loading vessels with coal, ore and other granular material, the combination with a fixed track or way, a movable bridge adapted to be moved into alinement with said fixed track or way and to receive a series of coupled cars, a chute having a fixed hopper-section connected to the bridgesection and sliding sections connected thereto, means for raising and lowering the sliding sections, and means for moving the bridgesection into place over a vessel so as to bring the track or way thereon into alinement with IOS IIO

the fixed track or way, whereby the material may be discharged from the cars in succession directly into the vessel through said chute without uncoupling the cars and without a free drop, substantially as described.

5. In an apparatus for loading vessels with coal, ore or other granular material, the combination with one or more fixed tracks or ways, of a bridge mounted upon a carriage movable transversely of said tracks or ways and having a track or way thereon adapted to aline with the fixed track or way and to receive a series of coupled cars, and means for moving said bridge into place over a vessel with its track or Way in alinement with a fixed track or way, whereby a car may be run upon said bridge and the material discharged in succession directly into the vessel without uncoupling the cars, substantially'as described. 6. In an apparatus for loading vessels with coal, ore, or other granular material, the comrectly from said cars into the vessel withouty uncoupling the cars, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ELLIOT HOLBROOK Vitnesses:

E. R. FREDERICK, D. H. BREWERMAN. 

